Op-Ed: Stamford train station project should benefit all commuters

Published 6:26 pm, Friday, November 30, 2012

Many Stamford residents and commuters have watched the Stamford Transportation Center project with a combination of excitement and worry: Excitement because the project offers an opportunity to improve the area around the transportation center, and worry because it is unclear what the state will do as it evaluates private bids for replacing parking, making station improvements, and building transit-oriented development near the station.

The state's announcement that it will name an advisory panel representing local residents, commuters, and businesses is a good step. As the state and advisory panel proceed, they should put commuters first. And while much of the controversy around the STC project has centered on the concerns of park-and-ride commuters, the Connecticut Department of Transportation must look out for the needs of all commuters -- pedestrians, bicyclists, transit riders, park-and-ride commuters, and taxi and "kiss-and-ride" travelers. Previous studies have recommended improvements to the station's bus terminal, pedestrian safety improvements, signage and digital messaging, and extended platforms. Now is the perfect time to implement them.

Don't forget pedestrians and cyclists

More than half of the riders who get off the train in Stamford each morning walk to their final destination, and more than a quarter of riders who leave Stamford each morning by train access the station by foot, according to Metro-North. These commuters must navigate what are, in many cases, dangerous pedestrian routes in an environment designed not for people but for cars.

Bike lanes are scarce around the STC, but this is changing. The new Urban Transitway includes bike lanes, and the city's Mill River Greenway will also create new cycling paths. Connecting these routes to the STC would be a low-cost, common-sense way to improve biking conditions.

Given the large number of walking commuters and the clear opportunity to improve cycling, a focus on pedestrian and cycling conditions should be maintained throughout the project. The ConnDOT project team reviewing the developer proposals should include experts in pedestrian facilities and community design. The community advisory panel should also include members representing the needs of pedestrians and bicyclists.

Plan development carefully

The STC project has many goals, including satisfactory replacement of aging parking facilities and maximizing economic activity. However, the primary goal of the project should be to improve the effectiveness of the station as an intermodal center -- maintaining access to rail services for all its users. This should take precedence over efforts to capitalize on the station through new development.

That said, downtown Stamford has succeeded because of the proximity of high-quality regional transit to concentrated employment and housing. So new transit-oriented development can make sense for the area -- but only if it is well designed. In particular, parking associated with new development could worsen traffic congestion, reducing access to the station. New development should be built and operated to reduce vehicular demand and promote walking, biking, and riding transit. Effective strategies could include:

ConnDOT's own calculations estimate that transit-oriented development will generate 20 percent less traffic than traditional car-dependent development. That bar can be raised further. There is nowhere in the state more appropriate for an aggressive effort to reduce automobile use than the Stamford Transportation Center district.

The STC project is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to remake the station area. Let's make the most of it by putting commuters first -- and looking out for the needs of all commuters.

Jerry Silber is a longtime Stamford resident and a leader of People Friendly Stamford, an initiative of Reinventing Stamford that works to make Stamford more accessible to walkers and cyclists.